Futureproof Radio, Nov. 25 Futureproof Radio launches Nov. 25. The live radio program, hosted by Shane Wolffe, will discuss current and future technologies that can help make the world a better place. The program will also be available as a podcast.

SaskOutdoors AGM, Jan. 24
SaskOutdoors will be holding its annual general meeting in or near Saskatoon on January 24.

Waste Minimization Awards, Feb. 20
The Saskatchewan Waste Reduction Council is asking for nominations for its Waste Minimization Awards. The deadline for nominations is February 20.

Singapore has a solar fan. What Saskatoon needs is a solar heater.

Local News Building Energy Efficiency
30% of Canada’s energy usage is from commercial and residential buildings. Building energy efficiency standards, similar to those in other provinces, can help save energy and money. You can find out more about the benefits and challenges of building energy efficiency standards on the Build Sask Green website.

Photos – Wildlife in the City
Gary Pedersen and Jeff Boone, City of Saskatoon, are looking for photos of urban wildlife for use in a series of brochures on Living with Urban Wildlife. They’re particularly interested in receiving photos of foxes in the city. In future, they will be looking for photos of skunks, badgers, raccoons and porcupines in the urban environment. You can email your photos to Gary.

Burrowing Owls
Good news! The number of burrowing owls in Saskatchewan is up. 2014 survey participants sighted 28 pairs, a 33% increase from 21 last year. There has also been an increase in public sightings. The Operation Burrowing Owl website provides additional information.

EcoSask News is a weekly round-up of local news and events. Email us if you have items you would like us to include. Additional upcoming events can be found on our Calendar. You can follow EcoFriendly Sask by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, or by email (top right corner).

Thursday, 20 November 2014

I chuckle every time I use my travel mug promoting a microbrewery. I’m probably drinking tea, but then again, you never know.

The Saskatoon Friendship Inn serves from 800 to 1000 meals a day. In July they replaced the styrofoam cups they had been using with reusable plastic mugs, thanks to a grant from EcoFriendly Sask.

I carry a travel mug with me wherever I go, and I’m always surprised by the number of people who don’t. The average office worker throws away 500 paper cups a year. And none of them can be recycled. They may look like paper, but they’re coated with a thin layer of plastic.

So, how can we make it easier for everyone to carry their own mug? Help is on the way. There are plans for a collapsible mug that you can “smash and stash.” Other companies are developing an edible cup, although that may prove too expensive.

We asked readers to respond to the magazine article by sharing a photo of their favorite reusable mug, and we heard from a number of people. Why not share your photo too? Who knows? There might even be a prize for the most unusual.

NewsMedicine Hat: Solar, Wind & Natural Gas
Medicine Hat has built Canada’s first concentrated solar thermal plant. They've built a wind farm within city limits and encourage residents to install solar panels by going 50-50 with them. Mayor Clugston says, “We had to reinvest, we had to diversify because all of our eggs were in that one basket, which was natural gas.”

New Drainage Regulations
The Water Security Agency has released the results of their online public consultation on agricultural drainage. There is general agreement that “drainage provides many benefits to agricultural producers, but that the negative impacts of drainage must be mitigated. Also, forum participants supported implementing regulations that are risk-based; those drainage activities of a larger scale, which pose a greater risk to land and property would require more stringent regulations.”

The Minister responsible for the Water Security Agency has said that new drainage regulations are a priority.

EcoSask News is a weekly round-up of local news and events. Email us if you have items you would like us to include. Additional upcoming events can be found on our Calendar. You can follow EcoFriendly Sask by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, or by email (top right corner).

Thursday, 13 November 2014

“Most of our thinking is centred around the immediate – today and tomorrow. We need to be thinking seven generations out,” says Janet McVittie, Assistant Professor, College of Education, University of Saskatchewan. “That’s hard to do when you’re young, but I’m hopeful that starting environmental education at a younger age will have an effect.”

Purpose and Parameters
There are several different forms of education around environmental issues.

Environmental education focuses on teaching ecological concepts and principles, such as the definition of an ecosystem or the balance between predator and prey. “They teach students about the environment, but the programs are not necessarily action-oriented or experiential, nor do they necessarily challenge the status quo,” explains Janet.

Outdoor education encompasses educational programs that take place out of doors. Most Saskatoon programs fit into this category. Outdoor education programs teach students to observe and to learn by doing. “It’s not enough to simply spend time outdoors,” Janet says. “Teachers can help students to view their surroundings critically. For example, one teacher took his students to the same spot in each of the four seasons, and he asked them questions: Where does the water in the creek go? How does it affect the areas downstream?”

“Outdoor education teaches about the environment in the environment. It’s experiential,” Janet explains. “However, unless the teacher provokes critique and action, it does not necessarily teach for the environment.”

Janet stresses the importance of discussing issues from a local perspective. “Issues such as poverty are complex. It’s easy to think we’ve solved the problem by sending money to Guatemala. By starting at the local level and moving to the global level, children appreciate that these are complex issues,” she explains. “Social and ecological justice issues are intertwined. One cannot heal the environment without resolving issues of inequity.”

Programs in SaskatoonSaskatchewan has only one formal environmental education program. Other than in that program, environmentally committed teachers are responsible for taking the courses they teach and working them around environmental topics.

“It’s an advantage to not have an environmental education curriculum as it allows teachers to take a critical, action-oriented approach,” Janet says. “But teachers are also at a disadvantage as they have to fit the environmental courses around the existing curriculum.”

The Province of Saskatchewan recently introduced a new science curriculum for grade 11 students. The Environmental Science 20 course description states that, “Students will learn how to examine local and global environmental issues from a systems perspective while considering the effects of human actions and a growing global population on the climate and environment, as well as the effects of the environment on human health.”

“The new program expects teachers to take their students outdoors,” Janet says, “but it’s hard to get outside in the regular 60-minute class. You need places close to the school, such as a community garden or a native plant garden.”

Moving Forward
A term that is coming into use is education for sustainability. It recognizes the connections between the environment, social justice, and the economy. For example, why do we place toxic waste dumps in northern Saskatchewan or locate garbage dumps next to poor neighbourhoods? How do we measure the cost of mitigating the environmental damage caused by extracting natural resources? Why are resources inequitably distributed?

Janet has met environmental educators from other provinces and believes that we see environmental education differently in Saskatchewan. “In Saskatchewan, we connect environmental and social justice issues and we support both formal (intentional, evaluated) and non-formal (workshops, tours) approaches,” she explains. “We take an action-oriented approach. We want to make children aware of the political process so that they can become involved.”

The new Bachelor of Education program at the University of Saskatchewan supports this approach. It focuses on helping beginning teachers to build the curriculum around the important issues of the day.

All teacher candidates now take a course called Pedagogies of Place which helps them find learning resources in their communities. Also addressed in the course are experiential, inquiry-based instructional methods and assessment for learning processes to support students developing competency in their inquiries. They also take a course called Ethical Beginnings which addresses social justice. Addressed in the course are critical approaches to teaching and learning, for examining and challenging the status quo.

Why It Matters
In an age dominated by technological advances, it’s increasingly important for all of us to balance our online time with outdoor time. Environmental education programs are crucial for ensuring that children spend time outdoors and learn to appreciate nature.

Sharing Your Garden with the Birds, Nov. 20
Sara Williams, author of Creating the Prairie Xeriscape, will be speaking at the Saskatoon Nature Society’s meeting at 7:30 pm, Nov. 20, in Room 106, Biology Building, University of Saskatchewan. Sara believes that saving water and providing habitat for birds are a good match and will introduce about 100 hardy, drought-tolerant trees and shrubs that seem to attract birds.

Thank You, WAM!
The members of We Are Many have decided to take an extended break. Let’s give them a huge vote of thanks for all they've contributed over the past few years, including hydration stations at community events and increasing our local supply of garlic and berries.

WAM is hosting its AGM at 7:30 pm, Nov.19, at the Core Neighbourhood Youth Co-op. Everyone is welcome.

Living Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation Needs Your HelpLiving Sky Wildlife Rehabilitation has completely outgrown its space and needs to find a barn or building on the edge of Saskatoon that they can use for the summer. Ideally, they would like access to water/sewer, outdoor space to build aviaries, and electricity. Call 306-652-5975 if you, or someone you know, can help.

EcoSask News is a weekly round-up of local news and events. Email us if you have items you would like us to include. Additional upcoming events can be found on our Calendar. You can follow EcoFriendly Sask by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, or by email (top right corner).

Wednesday, 5 November 2014

Two new buildings are going up on Queen Street, west of City Hospital, and both of them are advertising some environmentally friendly features. Let’s hope that they are part of a trend of providing alternatives to urban sprawl and a greater consciousness of environmental concerns.

Timber Pointe on QueenTimber Pointe on Queen is a commercial property with strata title offices to own or lease.

Of particular interest is the underground parking, which will have a green roof, a rarity in Saskatoon.

Wild About Saskatoon 2015
It’s official! The NatureCity Festival will rise again, May 23-29, 2015. The focus will be on the relationship between human health and access to healthy/biodiverse natural places.

EcoSask News is a weekly round-up of local news and events. Email us if you have items you would like us to include. Additional upcoming events can be found on our Calendar. You can follow EcoFriendly Sask by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, or by email (top right corner).

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About

“Be the change you want to see in the world.” Mahatma Gandhi

EcoFriendly Sask strives to inform, encourage, and support Saskatchewan environmental initiatives. As a small, personal undertaking, we provide an online publication as well as grants to support local environmental projects. The Calendar page lists upcoming events, and we maintain the conversation on Twitter, or like our Facebook.

Individuals and organizations are encouraged to apply for grants of up to $500 to support local projects that will benefit the environment.